As of this year, WY’s grading scale has been changed from a seven point to a ten point scale. The three point difference in the grading scale has been a huge stress reliever and has helped students grades to improve.
Long overdue, WY was one of the few CPS schools to have a seven point grading scale making it difficult to get the higher grades students at other schools were able to achieve. Now that the margin has increased, GPA’s are likely to rise. After the first semester of having this grading scale there has been nothing but positive feedback.
Some argue that widening the grading scale encourages students to slack off as they no longer need to know that extra three percent of information that we used to have to cram into our brain. This isn’t true at all. Most students are still going to give as much effort as they can to get the best grade they can. No student is going to study three percent less of the information thinking he will clinch the grade he would have otherwise had.
For many students grades often come down to a percent or two away from changing grades at the semester’s end.
The three point change really helps the hard working students who may be poor test takers or presenters. This year, there is a little more leeway for that demographic. Last year getting a 78 percent meant you had the lowest possible C. Getting two questions wrong on those 10 question quizzes teachers love to give meant you were a solid C student which was completely ridiculous.
With the grading scale change students will likely have higher GPA’s throughout their high school career. Students with higher GPA’s often further their education at elite colleges so now that students are given the opportunity to improve their GPA’s WY students should have an easier time getting into better colleges and have more successful lives. This will improve WY in the long run as our students will be more prestigious after they graduate and will better represent WY.
The grading scale change has helped all students as they now can have higher grades to reflect the work they put in. The change in the grading scale has been a great decision that benefits the student body.